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August 6, 2018

Personally, I’ve always been a big fan of fanny packs, despite their bad rep. Not only are they super convenient and handy, they are also a really fashionable trend this year. Fanny packs were all over the runway for spring, and I think they have a chance of sticking around. They are a practical bag that can be worn by anyone, and they are the ideal size for holding just the essentials.

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I started a new job just over a month ago, which is why I haven’t been posting much on my blog. It’s a decent job and it makes me money, so that’s all that matters. Since I started work, I’ve been almost exclusively using my black fanny pack. It’s so easy to grab from my locker, and sling over my shoulder, then proceed to get out of the building as fast as possible. It also adds a bit of classic style to my look.

Because of its practical, neutral look, my thrifted black East Sport fanny pack can go with just about anything. However, I decided to style it by wearing my favorite colors (green and pink), and adding accents of black from the fanny pack and shoes. For a dollar investment, this fanny pack has been more than a great addition to my wardrobe.

I then paired the outfit with my one other fanny pack, a patterned L.L. Bean bag that my mom picked up for me at a thrift store as well. It goes so nicely with my favorite green shirt, and even has a bit of black to go with the shoes. Both bags are the perfect match for this outfit, and most of my outfits, since I generally go for green, pink and black clothing.

Fanny packs are such a sensible bag, but they can also be a fun accessory and statement piece. In the junior’s section of the store I work there are small iridescent fanny packs with cat faces and ears on them. Pre-teen me definitely would have bought one. However, I am very happy with the two fanny packs that I currently own. I highly recommend that everyone own two good fanny packs- one neutral bag, and one statement bag.

June 18, 2018

A couple of years ago, I went vegan for six months. Although I couldn’t stick with it permanently, I did gain a lot from the experience, including a love of cooking. Being vegan meant I had to prepare almost all of my meals from scratch, which is a habit that has stuck with me. Lately, I’ve been cooking a lot for my family, combining veggies and other healthy foods into super yummy meals.

Today I’m coming at you with my first ever food post! I’m going to show you how to put together a hearty kale, bean and rice soup that is simple to make and vegan. Surprisingly, with such few ingredients, it is full of flavor, and has a thick, creamy texture.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1/2 bunch of kale

• 1 can of undrained white beans

• 1/2 of an onion

• 1 cup of uncooked white rice

• Salt

• Pepper

• Oil

• Water

Directions

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil before adding the rice and letting it simmer covered until the water is completely absorbed.

While the rice cooks, prep the veggies by chopping up your onion and removing the kale from its stalks.

Combine the veggies in a frying pan with about 2 tablespoon of oil and let them sauté until the onions are golden and the kale has shrunk in size.

Next, add the entire can of beans, liquid included, into the pan.

Season with salt and pepper.

Add water to the pan gradually, letting the veggies and beans simmer in the liquid for about 10 to 15 minutes. If you accidentally add too much water, simply continue simmering until it reduces.

When the rice is finished, add it to the pan and continue simmering for about 5 more minutes. At this point you might need to add more water, as the rice will absorb some of it.

When you are happy with the consistency, remove the pan from the heat and serve.

I love this recipe for the colder months, but honestly it’s just as good in the summer. With fresh veggies in abundance this time of year, I plan on cooking up plenty of meals for myself and my family, some of which I will share here on my blog. If you try this recipe out, let me know what you think!

May 30, 2018

Nymphet fashion is a style directly inspired by the character Dolores Haze in both the book, and the 1997 movie, Lolita. While the book is full of descriptions of Lolita’s outfits, the movie does a perfect job at making them a reality. It is a girly yet mature style, inspired by the 1950’s and perfect for wearing in the summertime.

In this outfit-of-the-day, I attempted to create a nymphet style outfit using what I could find in my closet. I started off with my new favorite shirt (yes, it’s the one I wore in my last makeup post). I found this shirt at Forever 21 in the clearance section for $5. What a deal! It is my favorite shade of pink and overall a super precious piece that has easily become a favorite.

For the bottoms, I wanted to give the look a bit of a sophisticated feel. I went for some nice grey trousers that I thrifted a little while back. I rolled them up at the bottom to make them cuter and more summery. I added my tan mules as a great summertime sandal, and carried around my Nine West bag (seriously the cutest purse ever).

On the day I wore this, I wasn’t feeling makeup, so if you would like a makeup look to go with this outfit, you can check out my post titled Sweet & Glam 60’s Makeup. I also didn’t add any jewelry, but I think simple is the best with nymphet style. Add a choker or a couple thin bracelets to accessorize this look.

You will definitely see me in this shirt again at some point this summer, probably over on my Instagram. It’s definitely the most nymphet-ish piece I own, so I’ll probably create more Lolita inspired looks with it eventually.

May 9, 2018

Today, 4 days before they deleted them forever, I was able to download my Polyvore sets. To share some style inspiration for a style I've been really into lately, I'm going to show you my favorite lolita/nymphet inspired sets that I have made over the years.

I started out on Polvore making collages of books I was reading, to give a subtle feel for the book and inspire cool aesthetics. Although I didn't like Burn for Burn very much, it does have one of my favorite ever covers, which I translated into the collage around it.

In the future I will make more posts featuring my Polyvore sets, since they were so much fun to make and are super inspirational to look at. Their styles vary a bit, depending on what I was into at what time. I also want to have a place where all of my inspirational Polyvore sets live online, since the site no longer exists.

May 2, 2018

I’ve been reading again! Yay! If you didn’t already know, reading is one of my favorite things to do. Unfortunately, I don’t read as much as I wish I did because many things factor into my reading life. Over the years much has changed as far as my reading goes. The one thing that remains is my love of books, which I’m going to talk about today, as well as in future blog posts.

For me, reading comes in cycles. Besides the fact that anxiety and depression get in the way of my reading, I’m also a mood reader. That means I can only read a book I’m in the mood to read. Sometimes it will take me months just to read one book, and sometimes I’ll read five plus books a week. It’s a horrible cycle that usually consists of several solid months of either not reading at all, or barely making it through half of a book, and then about a month of reading like crazy. Right now I’m in my month of crazy reading, and I intend to take full advantage of it.

Last month I re-visited Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. My first time around I didn’t finish it because I found the prose to be way too heavy. However, after finishing it this time, my love of reading has been completely restored. I could gush about this book, but I will save that for the review I plan on posting later on. Let me just say, it is a story that has inspired me in so many different ways. If you’re a lover of the book (or the movies), keep your eyes out for some exciting Lolita inspired fashion posts to come.

After finishing Lolita, I needed something with just as much great yet disturbing content. That brought me to Sickened: The Memoir of a Munchausen By Proxy Childhood by Julie Gregory. I picked this book up after reading two novels with plot twists that involved Munchausen By Proxy. It is a truly disturbing mental illness and form of abuse, so I’m glad to say that this memoir did have a happy ending.

I then participated in a 24 Hour Read-a-Thon, completing Sickened, as well as Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr, and Fix Me by Rune Michaels. If you want to know my thoughts on those, all of my ratings are up on my Goodreads, as well as any reviews I write. I also have a whole video documenting my read-a-thon progress which you can watch here.

Although in the past I devoured YA fiction, I’m now reaching for more non-fiction and adult fiction. I’m currently 3 books ahead of my Goodreads goal of 12 books, which I hope to surpass. Regardless of how long this reading phase lasts, I am so excited to delve back into my bookshelves and share my reading with you.

April 8, 2018

My favorite fashion collage site has died, replaced by an ecommerce site called Ssense. I could not have seen this coming and I am deeply saddened by the loss of this site. I have been making fashion collages on there for about 7 years, so I was shocked to find it suddenly gone. I'll miss being able to make fashion collages of my dream wardrobe, but I also wish that I could access my account to be able to save all of my old collages.

February 26, 2018

I'm a huge fan of color. Seriously, it's one of my favorite things in life. But black is always a go-to for me. It makes me feel like a badass, which is honestly how I wish I felt all the time. My wannabe-goth teen-self would for sure be proud of this outfit, dark green lipstick and all.

I have been getting so much use out of my thrifted long-sleeve L.L. Bean shirt. It is a great basic, and the material is super soft with just enough stretch. Out of everything in my wardrobe, I've been pulling this one out the most. Over top of that I layered this gorgeous tank, which I acquired from my mom's wardrobe. I love it as a layering piece, but I also think it is going to make a great little sexy outfit one day. With some black leggings and my new favorite boots, I loved the vibe this look gave off. I felt like I looked like I listen to jazz and write poetry in my free time, which isn't entirely false.

February 10, 2018

I love sharing the treasures I find at thrift stores. This trip I was particularly lucky, as my mom and I accidentally came across a local thrift store having a $5 bag sale. We decided to check it out and to our surprise, it was a really great place and we managed to fill up two paper bags with clothes. I definitely plan on going back, as their regular prices were also pretty decent; most pieces were $3-$5. Plus, I always feel good about supporting local mom-and-pop thrift stores.

I hope you enjoy the video! Let me know which piece is your favorite in the comments!

February 8, 2018

With the early morning sunlight coming through my windows, I set out to make myself as KAWAII as possible! Inspired by one of my favorite styles ever, decora, I wanted to try translating that style into one for people with bald heads. (Because you are just as cute with or without hair!)

If you are unfamiliar with the style decora, don’t be alarmed, most people are. It is a fairly new Japanese street style known for its excess of cute (kawaii) accessories, usually in the color pink. I have been enamored with this style since high school when I discovered it online. It is unlike any other style I have seen and I imagine it’s one that you will either love or hate. I highly suggest you look it up if you are interested. There is so much great inspiration on the web. Early 2000’s me was in heaven scrolling through Google to look at all the cuties with dozens of clips in their hair.

Without hair, my goal was to emulate the excess of accessories by gluing gems and cabochons to my face. I have a bag full of exactly those things, which I used to create this kawaii look. I kept my makeup minimal, using mostly blush and white eyeliner, as well as making little wings. I wanted this look to be as genuinely decora as possible for an American with a shaved head.

What do you think? Is this look a bit too much for you? Or are you inspired by decora’s crazy and cute style like me? Let me know what you think!